I am preparing for the annual Tomahawk Fall Ride & Fly Fishing Expedition & this time I thought I would attempt to get a little local information beforehand.

Since I am limited by the amount of stuff I can pack on the back of my motorcycle, I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions on accessible places to fly fish in the Tomahawk region. I'd like to be able to rent a small boat or a canoe so I wouldn't have to pack waders & wading boots - I'd much rather pack both my 8wt. & 6 wt. rods in the hopes of catching a Northern or two, as well as some smallmouth bass.

Any information would be appreciated.

Richard

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"No cerveza, no trabajo"

Richard,
My son & friends had good luck with northerns below the dam at the PCA paper mill just west of town. Good fishing from shore. Fish the eddies.

Jeff

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What if there were no hypothetical questions?

I concur with Jeff, try the Spirit Dam area, and the spots downstream east of the dam.

Well... I want to thank you for your fishing tips. Rain or shine I'll be heading up to Tomahawk for my annual solo fly fishing, camping & motorcycle pilgrimage on Wednesday or Thursday...

As luck would have it, yesterday a guy from Tomahawk came into the Fly Shop at the Richfield, WI Cabelas, where I am one of the 4 guys who work that area.

I mentioned this forum and the replies I received & he concurred with your assessment regarding the Spirit Dam area... we sat down with a map for a bit and he showed me how to access the fish from shore areas. I'd still like to be able to rent a small boat, canoe or kayak. Available saddlebag & tiedown space on my Sportster is somewhat limited so I won't even be taking my waders... something that floats would be nice. But thanks to all of you I know know where to fish from shore where I'll have a decent chance to hook up with some Northerns.

Thanks again,
Richard

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"No cerveza, no trabajo"

There's many areas in Tomahawk that offer great fishing from shore due to the number of dams located around town. I would recommend getting a map from the Tomahawk Regional Chamber of Commerce and trying several of these spots, including in particular the ones mentioned above. Wisconsin Public Service provides a free map titled "Lake Mohawksin and the Tomahawk Area," which gives directions to several good fishing spots around town.
I might also recommend trying a crayfish imitation for a variety of fish species. I could easily see this producing a 20+ smallmouth below an area dam. A popper might also work well for crappie and bluegill.
Have a safe ride, good luck fishing and let us know how your Fall Ride fly fishing weekend went.

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Gone Fishin'

I'll stop by the Chamber of Commerce and look/ask for a map as soon as I get to town... what's Wisconsin Public Service and how do I get one of their maps?

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"No cerveza, no trabajo"

WPS provides hydro power in the area and therefore owns much of the property around the dams. If one of their maps isn't available at the chamber, stop by the Tomahawk Leader office in downtown and I'll gladly let you borrow the one I have. It gives pretty good details on how to get to the Spirit, Jersey and Kings dams here in town. Unfortunately, the map doesn't provide info on how to get to the Bradley Dam in Nokomis or Grandfather and Grandmother dams off Hwy. 107. You may need a more expansive map of the area for directions to those. Or, the people at Chuck's Bait Shop in town are pretty good at providing directions and sharing info on what's working for catching fish.
Good luck chasing toothies! I can already hear the rumble of many bikes passing by the office outside!

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Gone Fishin'